And it's worth marketers paying attention - in 2016, the volume of Facebook conversations around March Madness grew by 40% year over year in the US.

"The volume of event-related sharing on Facebook saw its highest spike during the Elite Eight round on March 27. The conversation around parties started earliest and saw the most sustained jumps throughout the tournament, while teams and action on the court dominated the overall conversation."

Facebook also notes that around the world more than 650 million people are connected to a sports-related Page on the network, while 165 million follow a sports account on Instagram.

If you're looking to reach sports fans, it could be a good time to ramp up your efforts - the infographic below outlines some more key stats related to the event.